College and Coffee
by Kittyclaw
Summary: Oneshot, OxA. Nothing brightens a day of studying quite like a coffee break.


**I made RenaYumi oneshot challenge with me, because writing is so much more fun than studying. Random cuteness, same name as Rena's fic which you should go read. Enjoy~**

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><p>Her head jerked, Aelita stifling a snort as she straightened, glancing around to make sure her unexpected nap hadn't disturbed any of the other students studying around her. One boy glanced away quickly as her gaze passed him, but for the most part everyone was too lost in their own books to notice the resting habits of the people around them.<p>

Sighing softly, Aelita tucked her fist under her chin, shifting her pen so she didn't scribble on herself as she resumed reading. After years of struggling to get her homework done while surrounded by the quiet chaos of her library-bound friends, Aelita never would have imagined that the _lack _of their noise would prevent her from focusing. Of course, it wasn't just the quiet—the fact that she was in the middle of a text on theoretical particle physics didn't help much.

Shaking her head, Aelita shut the book, wincing at the loud _thump _the heavy tome made before stuffing it back into her bag. Eyeing her options, she picked out a much slimmer volume and, pen back in hand, began trying to work her way through _Oliver Twist._

An effort that lasted all of five minutes before Aelita was jerking awake again, once more stealing looks at her fellow students.

Aelita dropped her pen, frowning down at the novel that refused to hold her interest. Shifting her gaze, she eyed the notebook beside her, open to a blank page and ready for notes, should she ever focus long enough to write some. She fingered the page, wondering idly if she could still remember how to fold one of those paper footballs Odd and Ulrich had been so fond of.

Glancing discreetly to the people on either side of her, both absorbed in their books and notes, Aelita carefully tore out the page and began attempting the boys' old trick. The her surprise the folds came easily, and in a short time Aelita had in her hand a rough approximation of her friends' favorite study tool. Placing it between the tip of her finger and the table, she playfully lined up her shot, choosing a small space between two students towers of books. The boys had called them Long-shots—tough to reach goals that cost you a lost ball penalty but made it up with double bonus points.

Caught up in thoughts of bonus points and memories of shots gone wrong, Aelita didn't realize she'd let her shot fly until she saw the flash of white pass between the books. The two students looked up, eyeing one another in confusion. Aelita covered her mouth, quickly looking back down at her book.

She was so preoccupied with faking innocence that she failed to notice the person creeping into the seat beside her until they leaned in, whispering a bright,

"Nice shot. I believe that's ten points?"

Aelita jumped, her pen falling to the ground as she spun in her seat to face the speaker.

Grinning blue eyes looked back.

"Hey Princess."

A kind of strangled sound of startled joy escaped her, which she quickly muffled by tossing her arms around the boy's neck and crushing herself to him. She could feel Odd shaking with quiet laughter as he hugged her back. Pressing his lips to her ear, he whispered,

"I thought you could use a break. Coffee?"

"Yes," Aelita whispered back, eyes shining as she scrambled to gather her things. Holding out his hand, Odd motioned for Aelita to sit back—he would gather her things. After neatly tucking away her pens, notebooks, and unread novel, Odd made to toss the bag over his shoulder, only to stumble under the weight, the bag dropping to the ground with a dull thud.

Aelita stifled a giggle as Odd fixed the bag with a horrified look, and quickly rescued her physics book, tucking it neatly in her arms. Odd's look transferred the thick textbook, the blonde flashing her a 'you're insane' look before shouldering her bag and, with a grand sweeping gesture, motioned for Aelita to lead the way. Fairly skipping, the pink haired girl did nothing to hide her grin as she led her friend through the library and out to the courtyard beyond.

As soon as they were outside, she squealed with excitement, spinning around and tossing her arms around the blonde's neck once more. Odd yelped his surprise, playfully shouting for her to watch the textbook. With a sheepish 'Oh!' she moved back, both blushing and continuing to smile as she hugged the book to her chest with one hand. The other she slipped into Odd's snuggling close as they started out across campus.

"So Princess, how was class?" Odd asked. Aelita sighed, dramatically rolling her eyes.

"Long," she offered. Odd laughed.

"Well, you did sign up for a three hour class," he said. "They tend to be kind of long." Aelita laughed back, shoving the blonde lightly.

"I know. And I love every minute of it. The professor really understands the information, and it's all so fascinating," she gushed, hugging Odd's arm as she spoke. "I think it's a class Jeremy would have really liked. I should talk to him about it some time, see if his school offers it as well."

"That's a good idea," Odd said. He sounded faintly distracted. Glancing up, Aelita was surprised to see him staring at his phone.

"Am I boring you?" she teased. Looking up sharply, Odd glanced at Aelita, then his phone, and then quickly stuffed the cell back into his pocket.

"Of course not!" he said, doing his best to look like he was giving Aelita his full attention. He'd turned so fully towards her that Aelita was forced to veer them to the side to keep the blonde from walking into a light post. She shook her head at him, laughing.

"You know I'm just teasing you," she said. "But yes, it is a good idea. Maybe I'll try and catch Jeremy online tonight." Frowning, she added, "You know, he's been rather hard to get a hold of lately. Whenever I call him he's always busy or in the middle of something, and when I get online it's always right as he gets off. Do you think anything's wrong?"

Odd, looking surprised by the question, quickly shook his head.

"I'm sure he's just got a lot on his mind, that's all," he assured her. "You know how he gets."

"You're right," Aelita said, her expression easing. "He does tend to get all caught up in his projects." When Odd didn't respond right away Aelita glanced up to see he was again peering at his phone, although trying to be a little less conspicuous this time. Quirking an eyebrow, Aelita made a playful snatch for the phone.

She wasn't expecting for Odd to have a mini panic attack, the blonde quickly jerking the phone from her reach.

"What?" she asked, eyeing the boy. "Are you talking to your secret girlfriend?"

"No," Odd said quickly. "Just a, umm, a project partner. For my art theory class. We have a presentation due and he's worried about some final details."

"Huh," Aelita breathed. She gave her boyfriend a speculative look. "What's the project on?" While Odd sputtered, struggling to come up with a response, Aelita struggled to hide a grin. She could tell Odd wasn't being honest, but she didn't expect anything nefarious from his terribly woven lies. Besides, it was more fun trying to taunt the blonde than ever call him out outright. Her questioning was enough for him to know she was on to him, and she knew he would tell her what was going on eventually.

Luckily, Odd was saved from "eventually" becoming "now" by their timely arrival at the campus's small coffee shop. Smiling brightly, Aelita began leading the way into the coffee shop, only to have Odd pull her back. Blinking her confusion Aelita started to ask Odd what was wrong, but he paused only long enough to place himself in front of her before leading them into the coffee shop.

Her confusion only grew when they began moving not towards the counter, like Aelita was expecting, but off to the side, towards a section of secluded tables and chairs. When Aelita tried to move around in front of the blonde he grabbed both her hands, keeping her behind him.

"Odd," Aelita huffed, "where are we going?"

"You'll see," he promised, winking over his shoulder. Aelita pouted, her frown growing when Odd suddenly stopped, whirling around to face her.

"Aelita," he said, tone stern, "what is today?"

Aelita blinked.

"Umm, Wednesday?" she guessed, confused by the boy's question. Odd sighed.

"Yes, but do you know the date?" Aelita frowned. With a jolt of surprise she realized she didn't—she's been so caught up with projects and papers that she'd completely lost track of the days beyond days she had class and days she didn't.

"No," she began to say, and then she paused, frowning at the blonde. "Why? Is something special happening today?" When Odd only grinned, Aelita racked her brain, trying to figure out what possible event could be linked with today's date—whatever it may be—that she'd obviously failed to remember. Eventually Odd, who continued to watch her confusion with a bright grin, finally took pity on her. Resting his hands on her hips, he said,

"Five years ago today, I got to see you in person for the first time." Odd's growing smile reflected the understanding growing in Aelita's eyes. "Today's the fifth anniversary of your materialization. And," Odd continued quickly, while Aelita continued to stand and look amazed, "we thought that it was an event that required an appropriate amount of celebration."

Stepping aside, Odd finally allowed Aelita to see what he'd been hiding—

Sitting around a table, each holding a cup o coffee and wearing a bright, paper birthday hat, were Ulrich, Yumi, and Jeremy. Once spotted they all leapt up, shouting an excited "happy anniversary!" as they surged forward, joining Odd in crushing their friend in a group hug. When they finally pulled away Aelita was left brushing away tears.

"Thank you," she gasped, "Thank you so much! I can't believe you all came all this way just for this!"

"Well, 'this' is kind of a big deal," Ulrich said, winking. Aelita smiled gratefully, knowing just how far o a drive he and Yumi must have undertaken to come see her.

"We wouldn't miss it for anything," Jeremy chimed. Like his friends, Jeremy had undertaken quite the adventure, coming all the way from England to see Aelita. Grinning so hard her cheeks hurt, Aelita grabbed them all back into a hug.

"So, were you surprised?" Yumi asked, having found herself squished against the smaller girl. Aelita could only laugh and nod.

"Nothing cures study boredom like a coffee break, right Aelita?" Odd joked. Aelita's smile seemed to radiate from every inch of her body.

"Nothing," she agreed. "Nothing at all."


End file.
